Hampton man charged with string of robberies

By JAMES A. KIMBLEUnion Leader Correspondent

BRENTWOOD - A year after a Hampton man allegedly tossed a hooded sweatshirt, bandana and knit cap near a business along Route 1, police charged him with an armed robbery of a local pizzeria - similar to two others he is awaiting trial for.

David Wilson, 27, was arraigned Friday at the Rockingham County jail for allegedly holding up a Dominoes Pizza on Lafayette Road in Hampton Jan. 31, 2012.

Police said he used a pellet gun that resembled a Glock-style handgun in all three robberies.

Wilson was apprehended by U.S. marshals on Sept. 14, in Gardiner, Maine, on charges that he allegedly committed two robberies in Portsmouth, but he wasn't charged with the Hampton robbery until last week.

Portsmouth police say Wilson robbed a Tedeschi's Food Shop Jan. 29, 2012, with the pellet gun then held up a woman near the Vaughn Mall in Portsmouth three days later.

In between those two heists, Wilson robbed the pizza restaurant in Hampton, police said.

Wilson allegedly went into Dominoes restaurant, hiding his face with a bandana, knit cap and hooded sweatshirt and approached a worker.

Police said he showed the gun and told the woman, "Give me all your money. Go faster I don't want to hurt a woman, just cash. Where's all the money? Is the safe locked?"

The clerk handed over a small amount of cash and Wilson fled on foot, police said.

A worker at a nearby auto shop told police that on Feb. 1, 2012, he found a sweatshirt outside that resembled one described by police earlier.

State lab workers obtained DNA samples from the sweatshirt, Hampton Detective Christopher Gilroy said in a sworn affidavit.

Portsmouth police say they were able to bring charges against Wilson after he allegedly dumped clothing he wore during the Jan. 29, 2012, robbery at Tedeschi's Food Shop.

A clerk at the store called 911 around 5:15 p.m. after a man wearing a black ball cap and red bandana brandished a "Glock-style" handgun.

Police canvassed the neighborhood and found a black ball cap and red bandana on the ground near Sullivan Tire on Albany Street in Portsmouth. Wilson's DNA was recovered from the bandana, police said.

On Feb. 1, 2012, police said Wilson used the pellet gun to rob a woman of her purse in the Worth parking lot in Portsmouth. During a struggle, Wilson struck the woman in the head with the plastic gun, causing it to break into pieces that were left behind on the street, police said.

More pieces of the same gun were later found by police in Wilson's car, according to the police affidavit.

Gilroy, the Hampton detective, interviewed Wilson at the Rockingham County jail on Thursday.

During that interview, Wilson denied any role in the Hampton robbery, according to the affidavit.

Gilroy said Wilson decided to end the conversation once he was confronted with DNA evidence.